Emma Colaco grew up in New York City  to immigrant parents originally from a little port town called Mangalore in Karnataka, India. Emma doesn't remember where her family got the couch from, whether it was a garage sale or a family friend. Still, she chose it because "it's those items that stay with you for a couple of years that are really meaningful." She fondly remembers pictures with herself and her younger sister by that couch. 

Much like the couch, Emma feels that the South Asian community in the city is meaningful because they've stayed with her for years. Whether it be through grocery stores like Apna Bazar or Patel Brothers or holidays like Holi or Diwali, she feels that the community is accessible because there are so many pockets of Indian culture in New York City. In fact, despite never living in India for an extended period of time, Emma finds it feels a bit like home. More than say, another vacation spot. She's done research on femicide and dowry death, so she's developed an intellectual understanding of the difference in gender roles. Still, she hasn't experienced it first hand. 

To Emma, the American Dream is a fickle concept. She wonders how "attainable" it is, and sees it as a "fantasy to keep us going." The South Asian experience comes not from some abstract aspirations, but from what is tangible and lasting. Time and time again, much like the worn out but constant couch, that is community. 

– Mira Goodman

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant